Holly Dearn is interested in the circulation of information and space inbetween the author and receiver, where the opportunity for distortion lies. Using culturally important events, that are often conspiracy laden, situated on the periphery of public consciousness, the lines between truth and fiction, memory and history and reality and invention are blurred through a combination of factual and fictional images. Memory and culture’s role in forming memories is central to this, as the gaps in knowledge are filled with fabrications, mixing in with fact and fiction, also seen in the fictionalisation of historical events in film.
The imagery, taken from a variety of locations such as books, current newspapers, film stills and found images, presents itself as bricolage much like knowledge. Each image retains some recognisability and individuality from the whole, enough to hint at a original context, though not enough to explain the image or the reason for its’ use. The meanings become further distorted and twisted through the combinations and juxtapositions with other, seemingly disparate combinations of other iconic imagery. She creates a fracturing of reality through a repetition of fragments and merging of times evident in the combinations of cut, torn and spliced images, distorting one meaning to create another that conflicts to create a paradox of meaning.